Singapore legislation

Section 13

of Fire Safety Act 1993

Section 13

Powers in event of fire

Amended by7/200414/2013

(1)

The Commissioner or any member of the Force authorised by the Commissioner may, in the event of a fire or a suspected fire, by himself or herself or with other members under his or her command —

(a)

enter, break into or through and take possession of or demolish or cause to be taken possession of or demolished any premises or structure for the purpose of extinguishing or preventing the spread of the fire;

(b)

enter, break into, take possession of, remove or destroy, or cause to be taken possession of, removed or destroyed, any aircraft, vehicle, vessel or thing for the purpose of extinguishing or preventing the spread of the fire;

(c)

take any equipment required to be used into, through or upon any premises, aircraft, vehicle or vessel where he or she thinks it necessary for the purpose of carrying out his or her duties;

(d)

remove from any building, structure, aircraft, vehicle or vessel which is on fire or is in the vicinity of the fire, any flammable, combustible, explosive or dangerous material found therein without responsibility for any consequent loss or damage;

(e)

for the purpose of extinguishing or preventing the spread of the fire, cause any building or structure which is on fire, or which is adjacent to or in the vicinity of any building or structure which is on fire, to be pulled down, either wholly or partially, or otherwise destroyed or damaged;

(f)

cause water to be shut off from, or turned into, any main or pipe in order to obtain a greater pressure and supply of water for the purpose of extinguishing the fire in consultation with the Public Utilities Board;

(g)

shut off or disconnect, or order any person having the control thereof to shut off or disconnect, the supply of gas, petroleum, flammable material or electricity to any premises which are on fire or which are in the vicinity of the fire;

(h)

close or cause to be closed any street in the vicinity of the fire or calamity;

(i)

remove any aircraft, vehicle, vessel or thing impeding the operation of the Force and, where reasonably necessary for that purpose, he or she may use force or break into any such aircraft, vehicle, vessel or thing;

(j)

remove, using reasonable force if necessary, any person who, by that person’s presence or otherwise, interferes with the firefighting operations or who is, in his or her opinion, endangered by the fire;

(k)

control and direct all operations for the extinguishing of the fire and all fire services present and all persons there who place their services at his or her disposal;

(l)

use any convenient supply of water; and

(m)

generally do all other things that are reasonably necessary for protecting life or property or for extinguishing the fire or for preventing the spread of the fire.

Amended by7/200414/2013

(2)

No person or body (including the Government) shall be liable to any action, penalty or claim by reason of any action under subsection (1)(f).[7

Section 13 — Fire Safety Act 1993 | laws.sg